Groupies on the Road
by anotherOUATwriter
Summary: AU - Robin & Killian are part of a band and Emma & Regina are groupies / When Regina hears Emma's plan about following their favorite band throughout the country she decides to be reckless for once in her life and go on a road trip with the blonde she just met. But on their trip, they will not only learn things about their favorite band but also about friendship and love. / CS OQ
1. Storybrooke, Maine

Well, yesterday I posted a pictures-set in tumblr with the text "AU - In which Robin and Killian are part of a band and Emma and Regina are groupies." (link on my profile) and I read some of the tags that people wrote, and most of them actually wanted to read a story like this. So I decided to write it :)

At first it was supposed to be a one shot, but then I just got too excited and decided to make it a 5 chapter long.

If anyone is interested on being my beta!

Mara

P.S: For the two guests (or maybe it's the same person) that keep commenting that I'm "so dumb" and I'm tagging this wrong: why don't youread the whole story and not just the first chapter and actually realise that this is a CS/OQ fic? And even if only this first chapter would be published, can't Emma and Regina be friends and interact with each other without being "in love"?

I don't mind criticism, I actually take it in and try to grow with it. But if you are going to point out my work's flaws (which I'm sure there are more than 1000) why don't you actually take the time to read the whole thing before making a fool out of yourself?

* * *

Regina looked at the long line to get into the valley, she had not driven more than 8 hours to Storybrooke, the definition of 'Town in the middle of Nowhere,' to be in that last row at this concert. When she had decided to buy the ticket to the Storybrooke concert, she thought that it would be a smaller crowd; clearly, she had been wrong. Storybrooke was apparently the place where the hipsters met for concerts, maybe it was the east coast's Coachella. Regina studied the crowd as they waited in the outer part of the fence that surrounded the valley where the concert would take place. She growled. Now her chances of getting a selfie with Robin, the love of her life, were pretty much none.

Then, someone bumped into her, the sensation of a freezing liquid dripping down her body brought her back to reality. Regina was used to being pushed around, try to walk without someone crashing into you in Times Square or the Fifth Avenue, so she didn't snapped at the person. However, the person that had pushed her didn't think like Regina.

"I am _so_ sorry," she said and she tried to dry Regina's dress with a napkin "I messed up your dress!"

Regina studied the girl. Long, wavy, blonde hair and fair skin; she was also wearing sunglasses, even if it was nearly 6 p.m. and the sun was almost gone; she was definitely another hipster.

"It's alright, dear," Regina replied "It will be dry be the time I enter,"

"You alone?" the girl asked.

"Yes," she answered, trying not to sound lonely.

The thing was that none of Regina's friends or colleagues understood her adoration towards _The Hs_, specially her love towards one of the band members: Robin Hood. The first time Regina had heard _The Hs_ she was fifteen years old, the rock-country songs they sang had touched her heart. It felt like they understood her. And Regina fall in love with Robin, it was love at first sight - at least for her.

"Come with me," the blonde hipster snapped Regina out of her thoughts and, not knowing about personal boundaries, she grabbed Regina's wrist and started dragging her towards the entrance.

"What? Where?"

"I know the guy at the entrance, it's a small town," she explained, almost in a whisper and then winked at her.

"I don't even know your name!"

"Emma, Emma Swan," the blonde stopped dragging Regina and introduced herself.

"Regina Mills," Regina extended her hand, and Emma shook it. "So, you know the guy at the entrance?" Emma nodded, but before she could reply, someone called her.

"Swan! Where's my bribe coke?" a guy wearing black said.

"All over her shirt, can't you see it?"

"I told you, Emma," the bouncer said "No coke, no cutting the line,"

"Common, Graham!" Emma protested, "I'll let you get you a date with Ruby!"

Graham laughed, "You can't bring me a coke without dropping it on someone, what makes you think that you can get me a date with Ruby?" he was not making fun or her, just teasing. Regina could see that they were actual friends, "Just don't tell anyone I let you in, alright?" Graham said moving aside so the both of them could enter.

"You are the best friend someone could possibly have, G-man!" Emma said kissing his cheek, then she grabbed Regina's hand and dragged her further into the valley where the concert was going to take place.

Not much people were inside the concert valley. In fact, apart from the people doing the sound check, and the people who worked on the food stands, Emma and Regina were the only ones inside.

"This is awesome!" Emma squealed, "Common, let's see if we can find them, I want a picture with Killian,"

"You like Hook?" I asked, using Killian's nickname.

"Don't tell me you are Team-Hood!" the blonde faked an offended tone.

Regina took out a shirt from her bag, "Guilty," she said extending the shirt, it had Robin's face and below the picture it said: _Proud Member of Team Hood._

Emma laughed, but after a while she smiled at the brunette and said, "Well, Regina, you like _The Hs_ as much as I do, but you don't like my man. We'll get along," Regina nodded in approval, "Now let's go and see if we can meet them, maybe get a picture,"

Regina followed Emma to the part where the tour busses were parked. She wondered how the blonde would get them through security this time, Regina doubted that Emma had another best friend guarding the busses' zone. As they approached, Emma started looking for something inside her purse; she found it when they were in front of the two-meters tall body guard that was standing in the entrance to the parking.

"Hey! I'm a reporter, Emma Swan, this is my photographer, Regina Mills," Emma said, as if she was talking to a friend, "We're from _Today Storybrooke_," she showed him a carnet, that Regina decided that it was a credential, "We are scheduled to have an interview with _The Hs_,"

Regina was impressed by Emma's abilities to lie, she didn't even flinch while she told the guard her story. She had never been good at lying, or maybe her mother was too good at finding the truth, either way, Regina never got away with the things she did as a kid. Then she grew up and understood that she had to follow the rules, and eventually follow her mother's path and fill her shoes someday.

"No one notified me about that," the body guard said in a voice tone that showed that he was not in the mood to argue with two groupies.

"Well, you can call their manager and ask," Emma proposed, and Regina started to wonder how much of this situation was fake and how much was real, "But then he'd be pissed at you for bothering him and he will yell at you, and he'll be angry at me too... and we wouldn't want that, wouldn't we?" Emma added with a charming smile.

The body guard's gaze shifted from Emma to Regina, and them back to Emma, "Fine," he said, "But you have 10 minutes, and if you're not back by that time I'll not only kick you out from here, but also from the concert,"

"Yes, sir!" Emma said, waving as a soldier.

With the directions that the body guard had given, Emma and Regina ventured towards _The Hs_'s bus.

"I'm so good at this," the blonde smiled, "I'm sure I was a spy in my past life,"

"I'm taking you are not a real reporter,"

"_Today Storybrooke_ doesn't even exist," Emma laughed, "That's the good thing about people coming to small towns, they don't know what is actually real,"

"We are going to be in so much trouble if they find out,"

"_If_ they find out," Emma winked at Regina, "Now, common, I bet you want a picture with Hood as much as I want one with Killian,"

Regina followed Emma through the parking zone not paying attention to the other bands' busses that were parked in there, _The Hs_ were not the only group performing tonight, but it was the only one that mattered to the girls. They stopped in front of a dark green bus, it had the name of their favourite band painted next to the door.

"This is us!" Emma said opening the bus's door without knocking.

The blonde entered and Regina followed close behind, she knew this was not a good idea, but Emma had some kind of superpower over her. She thank God that Emma had not gone to high school with her, it would had ended up badly. Emma giggled as she climbed the bus's stairs, commenting how easy it had been to trick everyone.

"What are you doing here?" a slim man asked them, crossing his arms.

Regina didn't know who he was, but behind him she could see Killian and Robin sitting on the bus's couch. Regina's heart started beating faster. The slim man had been talking to them, but now their attention was on the two girls that had just sneaked into their tour bus. The man was clearly upset by Emma and Regina's presence, but the two guys behind him were completely amused.

"Um, we are from _Today Storybrooke_, sir," Emma said, "We made an appointment to interview _The Hs,_"

"That's funny," the man said, "I don't remember agreeing to any interview,"

"And who might you be?" Emma asked raising an eyebrow, at least she had the confidence of a spoilt reporter.

"I'm the band's manager,"

"Oh," the blonde blushed a little bit, "Ok, you got us, we are not reporters," she said, and behind the band's manager, Killian chuckled, "But I am dying, and this is kinda my dying wish,"

"You are dying?" Regina asked Emma, shocked that the blonde could go to such extent to get a picture. Even Regina had some boundaries!.

"And her father died," Emma added, pointing Regina and completely ignoring the brunette's question.

Regina pursed her lips into a line. "Well, that is true, my did father did died," she replied and shrugged. Yes, her father had died, but five years ago.

"Get out before I call security," the manager said, obviously not buying their stories anymore. Emma was about to argue with him, but before she could open her mouth, Regina apologised for both of them and dragged Emma outside the bus.

They walked back to the concert, where the body guard told them they had only been gone five minutes and asked if they had got what they had come for. Emma answered with the true: partially. They had met Robin and Killian, kind of, but they didn't get to take a picture with them. After thanking the body guard, Emma and Regina walked towards the first row, people were starting to enter to the valley, and both of the girls wanted to have good spots.

The concert started when it was already dark, but Emma didn't take her sunglasses off. It didn't bother Regina anymore because she had grown fond of the girl with her iridescence sunglasses. The girls were two meters away from the stage, they see distinguish single detail. Like when Killian almost twisted his ankle because he didn't land correctly after a jump or when Robin almost hit one of the back-singers.

Regina enjoyed a concert like she had never enjoyed any other show in her whole life. Not only because she was watching _The Hs_ from first row, but because Emma made everything much more fun. The blonde had started dancing, and after a while, Regina had joined her too. Some people around them were staring, because they kept moving, but neither of the girls cared. They were having the night of their lives.

After _The Hs_ sang few songs, Killian walked towards the microphone and started cheering the people. It was then when he saw Emma and Regina standing in the crowd, he winked at them and continued talking to the crowd. When _The Hs_ sang their last song, Regina felt a knot growing in her throat. She didn't want the concert to end, she didn't want the day to end. She had had so much fun with Emma, and the concert had been a dream.

"Hey!" Emma said as they walked towards Regina's car, "Lets go to their concert in New Hampshire!" she proposed, "Actually, let's follow them throughout the whole tour,"

Regina laughed, thinking that Emma was joking, but when she saw that the blonde was being serious she raised an eyebrow "Are you crazy? Do you know how much will that cost?"

"I'm a reporter, remember?"

"A fake one," Regina pointed out.

Emma smiled, "No one needs to know that," she said, "We'll make really good credentials, for an important magazine... They'll let us in, we'll have complete access! Let's at least try!"

Regina pursed her lips into a smile, tempted by the idea, "I don't know, Emma. I mean, I had an awesome time tonight, but I start working in one month, I need to prepare,"

"You start working in a month and you need to prepare?" Emma asked and then she laughed, "Common, Regina! It is your last summer before you sell your soul to capitalism, let's enjoy it as _hippier_ as we can!"

"I'm pretty sure _hippier_ is not a word,"

"Whatever!" Emma rolled her eyes, "So, what do you say? Yes or yes?"

Regina looked at her, amused by Emma's wild spirit. The blonde was right, in september she would start working with her mother. And if there was someone who knew that employees at Gold & Mills never got free days, that was Regina. This was her last chance to act as a reckless young adult, it was her first chance too. It would be the debut and farewell to her rebellious side.

"Yes," the brunette said, pressing the button to open her car's doors "I'm in,"

"ROADTRIP!" Emma yelled and got into the car, "This is going to be epic!"


	2. New York, New York

Notes at the end.

* * *

After stopping at Emma's apartment to get clothes (thankfully, both girls wore similar sizes), some food and their fake credentials, Emma and Regina hit the road. Surprisingly enough, their ID cards were not some blank papers with their names poorly printed on them. As it turns out, Emma was not only a hacker, but also a graphic designer. She had managed to hack into _The Hs_'s manager's email and get the format for the original press credential and then photoshoped their names and pictures, the blonde even managed to removed the watermark that said 'imitation' over the credential's format.

"Well, you didn't think you were stuck with an amateur, didn't you?" the blonde asked with a smirk when she saw Regina's surprised face.

"Have you ever done this before?" Regina asked, arching an eyebrow,

Emma shook her head, "No, I always had work when they were on tour... Or I didn't have the money," she explained, "But when I heard this was their last tour, I knew I had to see them. Them singing here was the last signal I was waiting for,"

"Signal for what?"

"Quit my job and go on _Le The Hs's grand Tour,_"

"You quit your job?" the brunette was half-shocked half-confused, "And you knew from the start you'd be doing this following-across-the-country-thing?"

The blonde smiled, "I was going to do it alone, but when I saw how much fun you had tonight, I decided to invite you,"

"Why?"

"Because, girl, you seem like you could use some fun," Emma replied matter-of-factly.

"No, I mean, why did you plan on doing it alone?"

Emma shrugged "I don't have anyone,"

"I can hardly believe that," Regina said. She didn't knew much about Emma, but a person with so much spirit and positivism had to have a lot of friends, "What about Graham?"

"Look, I just needed to do this thing, alright?" she replied quickly, obviously wanting to get over with the topic,

Regina nodded. She nodded because she understood there was so much more stories behind this trip, stories that Emma didn't want to share, or maybe she was just not ready to do so. Either way, it was not the moment nor the place to push Emma to tell her something.

After that conversation, Regina decided to stay in silence and let Emma do her job.

Their next stop: New York. The tickets for the New York concert had sold like hotcakes. Regina didn't even have time to type her credit card number before all the tickets were sold-out, and that had been during pre-sales.

When _The Hs_ had announced that this was their last tour, everyone had been shocked. The reason of the separation of the group was still unknown, as far as everyone knew, Killian and Robin were like brothers, they were both orphans and had grew up together so it was highly unlikely that a fight was behind the group's dissolution. Not much was known from their past; Robin had found Killian almost starved to death in the streets of Storybrooke when they were 9 and 5 respectively. Robin had adopted Killian as his little brother, they lived in a foster family in the small town until Robin turned 16 years old, there they both learned how to play the guitar and sing. After leaving their foster house they ran away to Los Angeles, where the kids earned money by doing what they loved most: playing music. Soon they were discovered, and the rest is history. That had been almost ten years ago.

"Did you ever meet them while they lived here?" Regina asked Emma, remembering that the blonde also lived in Storybrooke.

She shook her head, "I'm also an orphan, I bounced from foster home to foster home, no one really liked me,"

Regina could hear sorrow in Emma's voice, as if she believed she was not worthy of love. Regina remembered what Emma had said a while ago, that she doesn't have anyone. It shrunk Regina's heart; yes, Regina's mother was a piece of work, but Regina knew that deep inside, her mother did whatever it took to make Regina excel in life. It was tough love, but at least it was love. And she had had her father, who loved and praised her until his last breath, who snuck junk food for Regina and bought her a horse just because Regina wanted more freedom. To grow up without her parents' love was something that she couldn't imagine, she wouldn't be what she is today if her parents wouldn't have been behind her all these years. Yet, Emma made it somehow; it made Regina see the blonde in a whole new light. Emma was a survivor.

"Anyway," Emma snapped Regina out of her thoughts, "I got there when they were already gone... I was twelve the autumn that I moved in, Killian was twelve the summer he moved out, we're the same age... I guess you can do the math," she shrugged.

"That sucks," Regina commented, Emma had missed few months, maybe few days.

"That's why I'll meet them now," the blonde smiled.

"You are really sure we'll meet them,"

"As sure as my name is Emma, and yours is Reg - ," Emma couldn't finish her sentence because she started coughing.

At first, Regina thought that Emma had choked on her own saliva, but when she didn't stop coughing after a few seconds, the brunette shifted her gaze from the road to the blonde that was sitting on the copilot's place. Emma raised a hand, to signal that she was fine, but didn't stop coughing. With one hand on the wheel, and her eyes fixed on the road, Regina used her other hand to search of a water bottle that she had placed somewhere on the backseat. She grabbed the container and offered it to Emma, but the blonde shook her head. Regina was tempted to stop the car on a side of the road, but they were already in the highway and stopping would be suicidal.

After a while Emma stopped coughing her lungs out, and Regina talked all the Gods that she had heard of for that. For a moment the brunette had feared that her companion would die.

"Sorry," Emma said in a raspy voice, "It happens sometimes,"

"Did you get that check?" Regina asked worried, "Should we go to the nearest hospital?"

Emma shook her head, "No," she swallowed, "I already got it checked, it's just spasms on my larynx or pharynx muscles... something like that,"

"Do you need pills for that?"

"No, I just need to stay relaxed and the episodes eventually end,"

"Alright then," Regina said, wondering if it was normal to have muscle spasms like that, "but if you ever need to stop at a hospital, let me know,"

Emma nodded. "So, New York, I haven't seen the city in more than 15 years," she commented, "I was in a foster home in New York when I was 5,"

"Is that so?" Regina asked, genuinely curious to know all about Emma's childhood. "Where did you live?"

"Bronx," she said with a shy smile, "I would have grown to be a badass,"

"Or you wouldn't haven't grown at all,"

"Wow, so much prejudice," Emma laughed, "Let me guess, you live in Manhattan,"

"Upper East Side," she corrected the blonde, not sounding mean but merely stating a point.

"Of course," the blonde said and laughed again

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I bet you haven't even been to the Bronx," Emma stated, "It is not such a bad,"

"It has the highest crime rate in New York!" Regina defended herself, "I don't have to go there to know it is dangerous,"

"It is a shittie and dangerous place, alright? But that doesn't mean that everyone gets killed. And I have some great friends living there and my foster family was amazing!" the blonde said and took her phone out "I am so taking you to the Bronx," she commented typing something on her phone, "But you need to change clothes,"

"We are not going to the Bronx," Regina stated, marking that discussion as ended. "Why didn't you stay with them?"

"The Bronx family?" Regina nodded, "They were part of the latinamerican mafia. My foster parents were arrested,"

"And you think that's a safe environment for a kid,"

"Well, in the year I lived with them no one bullied me at school," Emma shrugged, "So, I guess it is,"

Regina didn't even know how to argue with that statement. She wondered if Emma had been bullied a lot through her childhood years, and she couldn't help but to feel sorry for the other woman. "So, you know spanish," she asked, changing topics once again.

"_Un poquito,_" Emma said with an almost non-existent accent, "You speak spanish?"

Regina nodded "It's my mother tongue, actually. My mother is from Latin America,"

"Talk to me in spanish,"

"No,"

"Talk to me or we're going to the Bronx," Emma threatened her.

"I am the one driving, dear,"

"Not if I knock you out and shove you in the back of the car,"

"_Emma, olvídate de pasear por el Bronx,_" (Emma, forget about a walk around the Bronx,)

"Alright, we're not going to the Bronx," Emma smiled, "If we ever get into trouble, we are _so_ speaking in spanish,"

"I hope your spanish can get you inside the concert tonight," she mocked the blonde, "The tickets have been sold for ages,"

"Don't you worry, child," the blonde replied, "I'll get us in,"

Needless is to say that Emma couldn't get them in. Her charm and her fake IDs didn't fool the man at the entrance door. It hadn't surprised Regina, she knew that crashing the New York concert was impossible since the moment that Emma told her what was their next stop.

"We'll catch them in Washington,"

"Alright, but if we don't get in in DC, we call this trip off," Regina said, "Deal?"

"Deal!" Emma smiled "Now lets go to your place and get a good night of sleep, I have the feeling it will be the last time we sleep in comfortable beds in a while,"

The brunette shook her head, not commenting on the fact that she was taking Emma to her house. She was bringing a stranger to her home. But, it didn't feel like Emma was a stranger. She decided not to tell anyone about this reckless adventure, no one would even believe her either way. Everything what she was going was so unlike Regina. The brunette didn't really care, she haven't felt this free and careless in her whole life.

* * *

The coughing episode that Emma had is called _Laryngospasm_, it is an involuntary muscular contraction of the laryngeal cords. The condition typically lasts less than 60 seconds, and causes a partial blocking of breathing in, while breathing out remains easier. They are usually harmless but the could be a sign for underlying diseases.

Next chapter will be narrated around Robin and Killian! - or at least I hope so.

Anyways, thanks for all the reviews, follows and favs! They encourage me to keep on writing!

Hugs,

Mara.


	3. Chicago, Illinois

Alright, people! We are half way through!

I'm sorry it took me so long to update :/

Thank you for reviewing, following and favoriting - you guys don't know how much better my day is when I see the notifications!

* * *

"Excellent job, Hs!" Jonathan, their manager, clapped as the two singers walked into their tour bus. "Another mesmerised crowd,"

He started talking about the schedule and upcoming events. The concert in Las Vegas had finally sold out, and he insisted on an extra show in Los Angeles, but Robin and Killian refused, arguing that they would stick to the original tour dates. The manager tried to convince them, but he didn't succeed. After all, their contract stated 10 concerts, and 10 concerts he would get. No more, no less. The man decided to leave them before they decided to cancel any event.

"Wanna guess who I saw in the crowd tonight?" Killian asked Robin.

"Please tell me it was not the crazy redhead with the '_I can put the hood in your little Robin'_ shirt,"

Killian laughed and then shook his head, "No, the girls from Storybrooke," he said "you said you saw them at the Washington Concert, right?"

"But they were not at the New York one," Robin pointed out, trying to ruin Killian's theory before he even started building it.

"Maybe we were not looking for them," too late for that, Killian probably had already a whole story in his mind. "They must be spending crazy amount of money, to pay for all our concerts,"

Robin breathed out "Well, there's nothing we can do about it,"

It was true, what could they do? Forbid them to enter the arena? Order them to sell their tickets to other fans? They were grown up women, and sadly, neither Robin nor Killian had the right to do anything against two fans going to all their concerts. But, they can do something nice for them - or at least that was what Killian thought.

"If I see them on our next concert, I'm inviting them back stage,"

"You can't do that,"

"Yes, I can and I will," Killian argued "You will just have to deal with it. Besides, you have to admit it, they are smoking hot,"

"You know I stopped caring about that," Robin said shaking his head "Ever since - ,"

"Yeah, yeah, that crazy groupie asked you to marry him for the sake of your kid and when you said no she killed herself,"

"She killed herself because of me!" the older singer said, guilt colouring his voice. "Because she thought I loved her,"

"You told her you would take care of the kid, but that you couldn't marry," Killian argued "It is hardly your fault, it's not like you told her you were in love with her when you slept together," he wanted to add that it had been almost two years since Marion took her life, but that would just fuel Robin's anger

Robin didn't reply anything. Deep inside he knew that Killian was right, but he simply couldn't shake the guilt off and no matter that Killian could say would wash away his culpability. After Marion killed herself he had a wake up call, he obviously took Roland in and swore women off.

Killian didn't insist on the conversation either. He knew the that the topic was a sensible one, and he didn't blame Robin. It had been a shock for him too. But that didn't mean that he would stop fooling around, that he would give up on finding love; he just needed to be extra-careful before starting something with any girl.

Besides, apart from Marion killing herself, Robin had been blessed by that relationship. Roland was the best thing that had happened to them in a long time. Killian enjoyed being the little man's uncle. The kid made the tour way more entertaining - specially during the day, when they had to travel hours without stopping; at night, by the time they finished the concert, the three-year old was always sleeping.

The younger man didn't break the silence. He knew it was better to let Robin cool off. His brother had a lot of things on his mind at the moment, guilt and worry being the top two. But Killian was sure that someday they would be as they used to be. After all, time heals even the most deep wounds.

Killian jumped into his bed without having his usual midnight snack and closed his eyes, thinking on two of the fans that he had seen tonight. He didn't know why, but he couldn't forget their faces, specially the blonde's. She had the face of an angel - even if she wore sunglasses all the time, he couldn't help but wonder why, maybe she was blind? Not likely, it seemed like her sight was alright when she sneaked into their bus. He hoped that he would spot the two women at their next concert, either way he'd take it as a sign: if he saw them, the blonde was _the_ one; if he didn't see them, the blonde was not the one. But she would be there, he smiled to himself, he knew she would be there. And with the blonde occupying his mind, he fall asleep.

* * *

"Good Evening, Chicago!" Killian yelled and the crowd screamed back at him "It is so good to be back, Robin and I were commenting how much we love to walk down these streets. And the pizzas! Don't get me started on the pizzas!"

The crowd agreed with him, with an euphoric scream. Killian scanned the crowd, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw two familiar faces among the fans. He smiled, more to himself than to anyone else, looked at Robin and continued with interaction with the crowd. When it was time for a costume change, Killian walked towards one of the security guards that were standing on the stage's egde and asked him for a favor.

"Take those two girls to our bus, please," Killiam said, pointing at the blonde that haunted his mind and her friend "the one with orange shirt and the one with white shirt and sunglasses, tell them we'll meet them when we are done," the guard nodded and walked towards the girls.

Killian smirked and returned to the stage, excited about this whole situation. He had never picked two fans like that and it was exhilarating - he would finally meet his blonde. His blonde? He shook his head. More like_ the_ blonde, he would meet the blonde.

The younger singer usually loved concerts, it was the only thing of the music business that he really enjoyed and would miss when he and Robin retired, but he had never wanted something to end so badly as he wanted this event to finish.

He didn't tell Robin about the two girls that were waiting for them in the bus, he, of course wouldn't approved of Killian inviting them over, specially with Roland in the bus. But for some bizarre reason, Killian felt like she could trust them. Specially the blonde.

"Killian, what's the meaning of this?" Robin asked when they both entered to the bus and saw the girls talking to each other. His voice made them shut up.

"I told you I'll invite them over," Killian smiled and walked towards them, "I don't think we've been properly introduced, my name is Killian Jones,"

"We know," a smile appeared on the blonde's face, and it make Killian skip a beat, "I'm Emma, this is my friend Regina,"

"I've seen you both in pretty much all our concerts,"

"Except New York, we couldn't enter to that one," Emma replied nodding.

Regina didn't interrupt her friend, she knew how badly Emma wanted to meet Killian - the blonde was even more obsessed with Killian than she was with Robin, who kept quiet and with an angry expression away from them.

"You must have spent a fortune in all the tickets," Killian said, pursing his lips into a thin line, as if he was sorry about that.

"Not really," Emma replied with a proud smile, "We only paid the one at Storybrooke," she said, "To the rest, we've been entering with these babies," Emma explained taking out from her purse hers and Regina's fake credential.

Killian studied it, it looked like an original, "Well, hats off," he smiled and tried to return the credential back to Emma, but Robin took it from his hands.

"Great, Killian," the older singer told his friend, "You brought into our bus a pair of fans that even faked their credentials to get near to us,"

"I know, isn't that amazing?" Killian asked with a genuine smile, and for a moment Regina realised that he and Emma were meant to be together. They were so naive, and they never understood the real meaning behind a sentence.

Robin didn't think that the fake credentials were amazing. What Robin really thought was that they were some kind of crazy fanatics that were willing to rape them with no mercy. And Regina wouldn't stay and be humiliated like that.

"We are leaving, Emma," the brunette said standing up.

"What? Why?" Emma protested, "We just got here,"

"And we are clearly not welcomed,"

"You mean Robin?" Killian asked, "He's just worried you are a psychopath or something,"

"Right, we are the psychopaths. But the fact that _you_ invited _us _to your tour bus makes you a completely normal person, right?" Regina argued, "You brought us here for God knows what reason and we are the maniac ones?"

"What? I didn't - ," Killian started speaking.

"Emma, we are going,"

"But -," Emma tried to reason with her friend.

"Emma, you either leave with me or walk back to Storybrooke," Regina warned her, she was not going to stay in a place where she was considered a lunatic fan.

She shoot a glare at Robin, who had been silent in the last part of the argument. He was looking back at her, he didn't feel sorry for upsetting her and it looked like he actually felt relieved when Emma started standing up. Regina narrowed her eyes and threw daggers at him. What a douche! She couldn't believe she had thought he was the man of her dreams.

"Daddy?" a voice interrupted Regina's glare contest with Robin, and four pairs of eyes ended up in the kid that stood by the door. He looked scared.

All the adults stayed quiet, Regina had no idea that the singer had a kid. Then again, not much of their private lives was known. Was he also married? Maybe that's why he didn't want fans in the bus, because he loved his wife and he didn't want to cheat on her.

"What's wrong, Roland?" his father asked standing up and walking towards the boy, "Another nightmare?"

"Mommy,"

Robin kneeled "Buddy, we already talked about this, mommy is not coming back,"

_'So, the kid's mother was dead,'_ Regina thought and couldn't help but to feel bad for him. Kids needed their parents.

Roland's teary eyes went from Robin to the two women who were sitting, "Mommy?" he asked pointed at them. He had never seen a woman inside the bus, so the logic assumption was one of the women was dating his father: kids' logic.

"No, bud, these are just Killian's friends," he explained and the kid nodded.

Roland walked towards them and extended his arms towards Regina. The brunette didn't hesitate, she took the boy in her arms and wrapped him in a tight hug.

"Thank you," the boy murmured against Regina. Regina lowered her head, to press her lips against the top of the boy's head, but she didn't kiss him, she just kept him as close as she could.

Regina knew that Robin was looking skeptically at her, but she didn't mind anymore, and she understood. He didn't want strangers around his kid, he didn't want any woman to use Roland to get at him. She looked down at the boy's face and his adorable curly hair, she'd never dare to harm this kid.

"I think he's asleep," Regina commented after a short time "Let me put him in his bed and then we'll leave,"

Robin and Killian both nodded, impressed at Regina's motherly skills - Roland had never fallen asleep so fast and easily, not even when he was on her father's arms. The brunette stood up and walked, with no invitation, into the room that Roland had appeared from few minutes ago. It had to be Robin's room. There was only one bed and it was unmade, but Regina didn't know where to put Roland and she didn't want to move too much, afraid to wake him up.

"Just place him on the bed," she heard a gentle whisper behind her back and knew perfectly it was Robin.

Without even nodding Regina walked towards the bed and bent her body a little bit, so that Roland wouldn't fall much as she placed him over the bed. She grabbed the sheets and tucked the kid in, and then, she gently ruffled the boy's head, as she whispered a sweet "Good night,"

She turned on her heels and exited the room, not even saying bye to Robin - even if she understood his behaviour, she was still angry at and hurt by the way he had behaved.

"I'm ready," Emma said waiting for her at the bus's entrance door, and Regina thanked the Gods for that.

"It was a pleasure to meet you both," Killian said as he walked them out, "I hope we'll see each other again," he wanted to make it sound as if he was talking to both women, but it was pretty clear to Regina that he was referring to Emma, and she couldn't be happier for her friend and worried too.

What if Killian was just playing with her friend's heart? What if this was all part of a higher scheme between Robin and Killian? Would they really make a kid be part of something like that? The brunette shook her head. She was readying too much into the situation. Killian was probably just being nice because he thought they had paid for all the concerts. Either way, she cared about Emma, she didn't want her to get hurt.

"Regina!" Emma yelled, "Are you even listening to me?"

"Um, no," she admitted, "What were you saying?"

"I said that it was fucking awesome,"

Regina rolled her eyes at Emma's lexicon but smiled, "Yes, Killian was nice,"

"Robin was kind of a dick," the blonde shrugged, "But, I bet he was just trying to protect his son,"

"Probably," she replied, not wanting to get started on the topic of how disappointed she was. "Let's get to the hotel, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow,"

"Yeah, it's 14 hours until Denver, are we doing that in one day?"

"Are you crazy? I can't drive that long, we're going to spend a night in Lincoln,"

"Nebraska?"

"Unless you want to drive the rest of the way to Denver, which is more than six hours, then yes,"

"Nope, I'm totally fine with staying in Nebraska," the blonde shrugged. She loved to drive, but she hated driving for so long, besides, Regina would probably be asleep during that time and she'd get bored as hell. No, it was definitely better to stay the night at Lincoln.


	4. Phoenix, Arizona

So, I think I'll write 6 instead of 5 chapters as I had originally planned because the plot in my mind extended and now I can't cut it... But, I'll have to put it on a short hiatus, I have to study and I don't think I'll be able to write in a while :/

Other than that, thanks for reviewing, following and favoriting! - it always makes me smile!

Mara.

* * *

Emma had had in mind to meet the Hs when she decided to have this adventure, but she had never imagined that she would be invited to their bus, twice - first in the Chicago concert and then in the Denver one. The blonde felt bad for Regina because Robin had been kind of a douche the first time they met; but the brunette said it didn't matter and during their second short visit she had decided to play with Robin's kid and completely ignore the father.

Served him well, Emma thought, if there was someone who was completely uninterested in someone due to their social status or money it was Regina. The trip and meeting the Hs hadn't even been her idea, she just decided to tag along and crash all the concerts; but she never expected to meet the Hs in person, let alone have a conversation with them.

Emma lowered the window glass and let the air dry her damp hair. She had washed it that morning but didn't have time to dry it; not that she really cared, she loved having her hair wet. The two girls had hit the road early that day, they had a long way to Phoenix, Arizona - which marked the 6th of the 10 concert-long tour - and since Emma hated driving, she had decided to let Regina set their travelling schedule and routes.

"Can you please pull over?" Emma asked, "I want to skate,"

"You want to skate?" Regina repeated confused,

"Common! Look at this road!" the blonde pointed at the empty high way, Regina had chosen to use the old high way to save some money on the toll payment, "There's no one beside us, and it's perfect!" Emma tried to convince Regina, "Please?"

"Is that even safe?" the brunette inquired as she reluctantly slowed down and parked the car.

"Sure it is! I'll be holding to car with one hand," Emma said happily, "I've done it million times!"

Regina was not sure about the idea, specially the part of holding the car, but she wasn't Emma's mother. "Fine, but I'll drive slowly,"

"You are the best!" the blonde replied as she got down and took her long board from the backseat, "This is going to be epic," she added, as she stepped on the board and tightened her grip around the open co-pilot's window, "Let's go then,"

It took a while for Regina's stomach to relax, the fear of killing Emma was replaced by the happiness of seeing Emma enjoy the moment. Even if this was completely reckless and totally dangerous, it felt good to do something crazy for the first time in her life - that was, apart from accepting to go in this crazy adventure with the blonde. Truth to be told, Regina never had a friend like Emma. Actually, she had never have a friend, period. All her colleagues and classmates had treated her well and had been friendly towards her, but they had never been her friends, they had never shared stories or jokes with Regina.

Emma let go of the car two or three times, when they were going down a hill. The first time, she almost gave Regina a heart attack. Emma was always in a hyped state, but she looked so calmed as she surfed the street, as if she was one with the pavement. As Regina looked on her rear-view mirror, to make sure that Emma hadn't kill herself yet she noticed a bus changing lights at her. Not just any bus, the Hs's bus.

"What could they possibly want now?"

"Who?" she heard Emma ask as the blonde hold onto the car once again.

"Don't turn around, I don't want you losing your equilibrium," Regina said, almost in a scolding tone, "The Hs,"

Emma looked at the mirror to see what was Regina talking about "I think they want us to pull over," she commented.

"There's no way I'm stopping,"

"Ah, common! How many people can say that the Hs pulled then over? You don't even have to talk to Robin, let's just say hi to Killian," but the blonde knew that wouldn't do, "I bet Roland would be more than happy to see you," she added with a shit-eating grin

"Alright, alright," Regina rolled her eyes. "Grab tightly onto the car, alright?"

Regina didn't park right away, she had seen a while ago a traffic serialisation that said that a rest area was few miles ahead, so she drove until the resting place and parked there. The bus parked not far away from them. By the time Regina unbuckled her seatbelt and got off the car Emma was already talking to Killian.

"Can I try that?" the singer asked.

"Have you ever skate before?"

"No,"

"Then you can't try,"

"Why?"

"Because it's reckless," Emma said, being responsible for the first time since she started the trip and ignoring Regina's _hmpf _"It's like taking diving someone who doesn't know how to swim,"

"But if I never try it, how will I ever learn how to swim?"

"Well, it looks like you found someone who is as eager to encounter an early death as you are, Emma," Regina pointed out, she was about to add something else when Roland tackled her.

Regina smiled at the boy as she kneeled to take him on her arms. She had only seen Roland two times, but the kid had already won her heart.

"Hi," Roland said pressing his little palms against Regina's cheeks, making Regina's lips look like a fish's mouth.

"Hello," she replied with her lips still pushed together. The movement of her lips made the kid laugh.

"Play with I, 'Gina?" Roland said. Usually, Regina hated being called Gina, but the kid said it in such a cute way that she couldn't resist smiling.

"Alright, Roland, what do you want to play?"

"Chalks!" he said with a smile, "Daddy buy them yesterday for me,"

Regina grinned at the adorable grammar mistakes that the kid had made while speaking and nodded at his suggestion "Very well, Roland, let's draw,"

Killian and Emma watched as the boy and the woman walked to a place where the sidewalk was not cracked, kneel and start drawing on the pavement. Killian wondered if Regina noticed how good she was with the kid, he knew that Robin had been completely amazed by it from the day one. His brother had felt so guilty about the way he had treated Regina. Robin had tried to apologise the next time the women had been on their bus, but Regina had ignored him completely, making him feel more miserable.

Served him well, Killian had thought, Robin should know better than judging people on first impressions.

By the corner of his eye Killian saw Emma, who was smiling at the scene between the toddler and her friend. "So, tell me about yourself, Emma Swan," Killian turned, now his attention fully on her.

Emma seemed to think what had been interesting in her life "I swam with a shark once,"

"You're a liar!"

"I'm not!" the blonde argued, "I had to go to South Africa for some business meeting and I decided to swim with the sharks because, well, _YOLO_," she shrugged. Killian smiled at the use of the 'You only live once' abbreviation.

"You just made that up to sound interesting," he insisted.

"I do not lie,"

There was a silence after that. It was neither comfortable or uncomfortable - it was simply a silence. Killian watched Emma watching him, her eyes covered with the same glasses she always wore.

"Why the sunglasses?" he asked curious.

"Because they cover my eyes,"

"So?"

"Eyes are the gates to the soul," Emma explained, feeling uneasy. "If people don't see my soul, maybe they won't abandon me like all the people in my past have," the blonde started playing with the hem of her shirt, hoping he'd change topics. She hated talking about it.

Killian couldn't see her eyes, but he could understand her body language. He had seen that same gesture in many of his foster siblings, he had even seen himself doing it a couple of times. It was a gesture people unconsciously did when they felt unworthy and helpless, it was a gesture - and a feeling - a lot of orphans had. Killian understood her, he realised; and he was sure she would understand him too.

Without saying anything, he reached for Emma's sunglasses and removed them slowly. At first Emma closed her eyes, but when Killian almost begged him to open them, she reluctantly did.

The singer had found the groupie beautiful from the moment he had first seen her, but one look to her eyes and he knew that he had found the right person for him. She had big, beautiful eyes, filled with mixed feelings; filled with sorrow and pain, longing for someone to love them, to fix them. "You are beautiful," he let out in a whisper, and for a moment everything around them dimmed, it was just the two of them, looking into each other's eyes.

"Uncle Killian, Uncle Killian!" the voice of the two-year old made him blink, breaking the eye contact. "Gina buy me a monkey, look!"

"Regina bought you a monkey! How nice of her!" Killian smiled to the boy as he picked Roland up and sat the kid on his knees, "Did you say thank you?"

The boy nodded, "And a hug!"

"That's my boy,"

"Ride bike with uncle Killian?

The singer laughed, "Roland, you know your father wouldn't give you, nor me, permission to ride my bike together,"

"You have a bike?!" Emma interrupted the endearing moment between nephew and uncle.

"A Harley Davidson Classic, yes," he replied proudly, "It's on the trailer attached to the bus,"

"Can we ride it?"

"Wouldn't_ that_ be reckless?" Killian smirked, reminding her of the conversation they had had that same day.

Emma rolled her eyes, she was not going to give Killian the satisfaction, "Fine," she shrugged, as if she didn't mind, "I guess I'll tell Regina we're ready to hit the road," the blonde added and stood up.

"Now, wait there, Swan," the singer grabbed her arm gently, "I guess riding few miles with you wouldn't hurt,"

"You just want to have my arms around your waist,"

"Maybe I want, Swan," he smiled, "Or maybe I'm granting you your wish of being spooned with me,"

* * *

Regina was returning from her failed attempt to talk Emma out of riding the bike with Killian when she saw Robin putting a child seat on the back of her car, "What on Earth are you doing?"

"I'm putting Roland's chair," he replied as if it was obvious, then turned to meet with her "Emma and Killian are riding Killian's bike, and I don't want you to be alone,"

"I've been alone most of my life, I think I can handle few minutes," she was not going to be trapped in the same care as Robin.

"Gina!" Roland ran towards her again, "Daddy say we go with you!" he added with a smile.

Regina smiled back at him, the kid knew how to wreck the walls around her heart, "Yes, Roland, you're coming with me,"

Robin smirked at the facility that his son had to win the brunette over. He helped Regina getting Roland into his seat and then he sat on the co-pilot seat. It was so relaxing to drive in a different environment, he was already sick of the tour bus. And apparently, so was Roland because the kid was ecstatic and couldn't stop talking for a good half hour. Then, Roland ran out of energy and fell asleep - with that the car fell into silence.

Regina kept her eyes fixed on the road, but she could feel Robin's gaze upon her, she didn't say anything, but she was sure that he was probably studying what else he could criticise.

"How long have you been friends?" he asked after a while

"Emma and I?" she saw him nod by the corner of her eye "About two weeks,"

"Are you telling me that you went to a road-trip with a stranger?"

"She's not a stranger," Regina protested, "She's an _Hddict_," she explained, giving Emma the proper _Hs_'s groupie name.

"Not all our fans are mentally stable, Regina," he said in a tone that made Regina wonder if he had started cared about her.

"She's not a a fan to me, she's a groupie. Groupies are like family," Regina said, "It's a feeling that you wouldn't understand," she added shaking her head, the ghost of a smile touching her lips.

"Regina, I feel like I should apologise for my behaviour the other day, I'm truly sorry for what I implied," he said scratching his neck, she understood he meant the day when he implied that they were madwomen "I just... after Roland's mother killed herself because I wouldn't marry her, I decided I didn't want this life anymore, any of it, specially the groupies,"

Regina nodded, "No need to explain," she said, "If I would have known you have a kid, I wouldn't been offended," the brunette said, then shook her head, "Actually, I _would_ have been offended because you just assumed the worst, but you don't know anything about me, you shouldn't be so quick to judge me,"

"Alright," Robin nodded, "Then, tell me something about you,"

"I'm a _Hddict_," she said, she hated talking about her life, mostly because it seemed like heaven but it felt like hell - most of the times.

He laughed, "That I realised by my own, thank you," Robin said, "But, really. Like, what do you do for living?"

"I just passed my BAR exam,"

"A lawyer, impressive,"

"Well, I don't spend all my time stalking you on twitter and tumblr," she smiled, partially because it was not true, "I'll start working with my mother soon,"

"That's cool," Robin said, "I wish I would be able to work with my mother,"

"Not if she's like mine," Regina shook her head, "Working with her it's like selling your soul to the devil,"

"Yet, you accepted to work with her,"

"Of course I did," the brunette shrugged, "She's my mother,"

She stayed in silence after that, remembering that he was an orphan, that he had never met his mother and thus he didn't know how deep the love between a mother and her son was. But he had a son, he probably knew somewhat about it.

"You're good with Roland," he pointed out, "I've never seen him so comfortable with anyone other than me and Killian,"

"I like kids,"

"Well, kids like you too," Robin replied, then he asked what he was meaning to know from the moment when he started talking about Roland, "Do you have any?"

"Children?" she shook her head, "I volunteer at the local orphanage, though... And I don't know why I'm telling you this," Regina added slightly embarrassed, she didn't want him to think that she was telling him all that to make herself more interesting.

"It's alright, I'm glad you did," he smiled at her,

"So, you and Killian are quitting the world of fame so you can raise Roland away from it?" Regina asked, returning to any topic that was not about her.

"Yes, that and Killian wants to find his true love," he let a laugh out.

"What's so funny about it?"

"True love," Robin answered, "I don't know how can he still believe in that,"

"I take you don't believe in true love," she commented.

"Why would I? It's not like my life had been blessed with it,"

"So, you wouldn't do anything to keep Killian or Roland safe and sound?" Regina asked, "You wouldn't lie, cheat, beg and bribe to make them well?"

"Of course I would!" Robin replied as if the question had offended him, "They are my family, I'd kill for them,"

"Sounds like true love to me," she said. Regina could tell Robin didn't know much about love, how could he? he never had a family to show him, "True love isn't only between a man and a woman who are destined to be together," Regina started, trying to explain to him the idea of love "It is between two people who care deeply for each other's wellbeing and happiness, it is between two people who don't have to say a word to comfort the other when they are sad or depressed but can do it just by being close to each other, it is between people who would do anything to see the other smile,"

Robin watched her in silence.

"What?" she asked when she saw him grin at her.

"Someday, you'll made someone really happy, Regina," he said, "And I hope they make you happy, because you wouldn't deserve anything less,"

Regina couldn't help but blushing at his comment, and cursed her body for doing so.

"Your face is as red as a tomato," he teased her,

"I liked you better when you were an idiot," Regina failed at suppressing a smile, "Then again, you are still an idiot,"

"Among other qualities, yes,"

Her smile only widened more at his pretended cockiness, maybe having this man as travelling companion was not as bad as she thought it would be.


End file.
